The Ugly Truth
by Wendy McCalister
Summary: No one knows, not even their friends. They keep it to themselves - after all, the others might think they're crazy. They might as well be, but to them, it's just the ugly truth. Kurama x Botan, set a few years after Yusuke's return from the demon world. Darkfic... maybe, depends on the reader's perspectives.
1. Chapter 1

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way.**

 **Chapter 1: Botan**

Botan doesn't know why it has come to this. But everything's changed, and it's too late to back out now.

She raises a hand and wipes away the tears from her eyes, though there are still tear tracks on her face. She doesn't know why she was crying in the first place; she shouldn't be. Any of this isn't supposed to mean anything and yet,

she's sitting here, next to the bed, with her legs crossed over her chest and arms underneath her thighs, face wet with tears and eyes swollen after crying.

Heaving out a sigh, Botan forces herself to get up, reminding herself not to be so weak. She flops down to the bed, sitting beside someone else who is sleeping; someone who she could only recognize as the person who has completely ruined her… dirtied her.

Known as Shuichi Minamino in his human name, or as she prefers to call him with his real name –

Kurama.

And it takes every ounce of control she has to not take the pillow, and suffocate him to death with it.

As much as she hates him, she can't deny she still cares for him. That she still loves him.

Ah, there she goes again.

Why is she so stupid to still love him? Even after all he's done to her? Hurting her, playing her, violating her even when she doesn't want it… touching her in places anyone has never touched her before without her consent… and making her feel like a fool.

She wishes they've never done this. Oh, how she wishes that very much. But now that things have happened, she can't change them no matter how much she wants things to change.

They had been normal friends. Just friends, and they weren't the closest to one another either. Except she's always been attracted to him, and him, too, has always like her as more than a friend, which is why she had given herself to him in the first place, willingly. She didn't think it was possible, but Kurama has grown addicted to her since then, even to a dangerous extent. And Botan doesn't know, and remembers, how things started to change and how they began to get involved in this… 'relationship'.

Of course, she knows he wants her. He wants to make her his, he wants her to be one of his 'treasures' as he told her countless times before. But it doesn't help when he's taken her by force multiple times, so much so she's lost count how many times.

Botan doesn't know to what extent Kurama lusts for her, but she knows he'd do anything to make her his possession for as long as he wants, which is forever. He's said it before after all, that she's his and no one else's, and he'd never let her go. And she can't help but think she's stuck with him, having to suffer all the time for eternity.

She still remembers her first time; it had been with him, of course. She's never let anyone touch her before, except him. Kurama had been sweet then; he was gentle, and he took things as slow as possible. Foreplay, and all, he did everything he could to make her feel comfortable, leave her all hot and bothered just for him, and ready to take him inside her. The… love-making had been romantic.

It wasn't until he started to grow obsessed with everything about her, from her body to her personality, that things took a turn for the worst.

He'd get jealous, sometimes too easily, and he'd get angry with her. He'd force her to have sex with him, even during times she doesn't want it. Botan doesn't know why, but he says he can't get enough of her; that he's not satisfied no matter how many times they've done it, and that… it serves as her punishment everytime she thinks of going near any other guy. To Kurama, it may be his way of making her 'learn her lesson', as he says it but to Botan, it's his way of being overly possessive and deliberately cruel.

It hurts her to think that he's not what she's been expecting him to be. He's not the person she thought he'd be. Kurama… had always seemed so calm and collected, so sweet and such a gentleman, that Botan thought with him, she could get the happy ending she had been dreaming of.

But it seems fairytales aren't real, and reality is much uglier than that.

Botan now knows his true nature, behind all the politeness and kindness he shows. Kurama is a demon; a cruel demon. He's a thief, a murderer, and a liar. He's heartless, and he won't stop until things go his way. In more ways than one, he's more dangerous than Hiei is. She's not stupid, after all. Since they've been 'together', he has kept her locked somewhere in his territory in demon world most of the time – letting go of her only a few times to be outside or someplace other than demon world, especially after Koenma had been getting suspicious of what was going on. And since she's been with him almost basically all the time, Botan comes to know, and realize, the things he's done to others that not even Yusuke or Hiei knows.

She's seen him 'hunt'; he's killed more people than she could count, and tortured them in ways one can't imagine. She's seen him drag a body, give it to his plants, and watch in sadistic delight the way his cannibalistic plants eat the corpse. She's seen him purposely taking the drug which Suzuki made on more than a few occasions, just to let his demon side take over, because he knows Youko is far crueler than he is and there for, would kill more mercilessly than he would.

He loves watching the fear contorted in a demon's face before he'd take away their life, and she knows that better than anyone else does.

And all this things he does, he does it without anyone but her knowing. Somewhere no one could see him doing such cruel things. Their friends think he's just running a few errands for Yomi – after agreeing to work alongside the blind demon a few years after Yusuke's return. But he's not. Botan thinks Yomi knows what Kurama does, how he goes on a killing spree, but she doesn't think it bothers him much. Which sometimes make her wonder why demons are so heartless.

To think that sweet Kurama… is this 'monster', no one would have believed it. But the deity of death knows what he's done, and he scares her. He scares the life out of her, and she can't describe how disgusted she is with him,

and yet, she still loves him.

Despite knowing all that, she still loves him. Because she knows this 'monster' is still the same person she first fell in love with. Even though Kurama is cruel, he's still that kind, gentle, and brave person; he's still a true friend who would do anything to protect his friends. And she loves him, through all the madness and cruelty she's witnessed. She loves every bit of him; his good qualities and bad ones.

And as Botan turns her head around to look at him, bends down to kiss him on the lips… to which he wakes up, and kisses her back, she can't help but think she doesn't care.

Botan hates Kurama, even to the point she's thought of killing him more times than once, but, as sick as it may sounds, she still loves him more than she loves anyone in the world. To think that an innocent, pure deity of death like her would still love this cruel demon even after finding out his sick ways, is ludicrous. But it's the truth; the ugly truth, and the reality.

" _You may think what I feel for you is madness, Botan… but to me, it isn't and quite frankly, I think it is… in essence, reality."_

He's told her that before.

And she can't help but agrees.

Kurama grabs her by her arm, and pulls her down to the bed. He switches their positions, spinning them both around until he's on top of her, and devours her lips in a hungry kiss, to which she responds with equal intensity.

There's a thin line between love and hate. She's crossed that line multiple times when she's with him, but she doesn't mind.

Even if she has to suffer, and cry over and over again, she doesn't mind it, as long as she's with him. She loves this demon, and she's willing to spend her life with him, even if she has to watch him kill again and again.

She doesn't tell. No, she doesn't say a word about what she knows about Kurama, doesn't utter anything about their relationship. She'll keep this to herself for as long as she likes. No one will ever know.

Not one soul.

After all, they might think she's crazy.

But to her,

it is in essence,

her reality.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way.**

 **Chapter 2: Kurama**

Kurama thrusts hard and fast, and she screams, her voice echoing in his cave. The bed creaks, threatening to break from the force of his thrusts any minute now, but the redhead ignores it. He'll get another bed; it isn't a problem, as he's done that many times already.

He's glad that Botan woke him up by kissing him, as he gets to do this with her the second time tonight. And now, he plans to fuck her again and again all night, determined not to stop until they're both exhausted and until the sun rises.

He can't get enough of her.

Her sweet scent, her porcelain skin, her body, and those rosy, pink lips… He loves the way she scratches his back, **hard** ; just the way he likes it. Blood drips from his wound, and it serves to turn him on even more.

Kurama can't help but thinks he's just being selfish, having his way with her until he's satisfied. How many times has he force her in bed? He can't count, and sometimes he hates himself for doing it too many times. It was a mistake the first time he did it, and he knows he's just repeating the same mistake over and over again.

And yet, a sick part of him doesn't mind it. After all, what he does to her is what he wants to do. She's his, and he can have her any way he wants, any time he wants. That sick part of him tells him it doesn't matter that she doesn't want it sometimes, and he complies.

Of course, the fox demon loves his deity of death. She is, after all, his most precious treasure. The best thing to ever happen to him besides his mother. But, he cannot hide the obsession he has with her, and he hurts her, violates her, breaks her… and he loves every minute of it. It's disturbing, he knows, but it's the truth.

The ugly truth.

And he doesn't like the way she gets too close to other males, even if it's one of his friends. He's overly possessive and easily jealous, and he gladly makes that clear to her everytime. Even though he takes her without her consent for his own pleasure, he does it, as well, to teach her. It is her punishment for not staying away; she ought to know not to make him jealous.

No one can have her. He'll selfishly keep her to himself, taint her pureness with his own touch of darkness, and destroy everything that comes in the way between the two of them. He loves her too much, and no one else is able to love her as much as he does.

He loves everything about her, from her body to her cheerfulness; he loves how she always manage to brighten up his day and help other people without asking for any reward in return. She's selfless, cheery, and he loves her – for all the characteristics she has, that he doesn't have.

Which is why, it is his way of being purposely evil, and not to mention, cruel, to have this kind of relationship with her. She's innocent and pure and everything he's not, but he's slowly corrupting her. Kurama knows she knows of his secret 'activities', and she's repulsed, but she still loves him – which makes him love her even more. She accepts him for who he is; something no one, or only a few people can do. Yomi knows he goes on a killing spree once a while, Kurama's aware of it, but he doesn't think his demon friend minds it very much. In fact, he thinks Yomi's quite amused. Something in his head tells him his partner knows more than he thinks, but he doesn't acknowledge it.

He doesn't hide it from her; the way he loves how his victims scream and beg for their lives to be spared, the way he'd heartlessly kill them and torture them in numerous ways he could think of, the sadistic and sick pleasure he feels as the warm liquid that he could only recognize as blood, drips from his fingers. He hides nothing from her, he shows it, and she accepts it.

Botan loves him for all that he is; the sweet, calm and loving Kurama and also the cruel, lustful beast lying dormant with him. He's asked her before if she wanted free, to get away from him, but all she told him then was that she accepts him as he is. That he's neither evil nor good, and that he's just what he is. 'You are what you are' were her exact words.

Kurama's not going to let her go. Not in the near future, not anytime soon. He doesn't even care if Koenma finds out, and sends him to spirit world jail for indulging in a forbidden relationship between a spirit world guide and a demon. He'll escape, kill everyone who dares to get in his way, and come back to her.

He comes hard inside her, and she whimpers at the feeling of his essence in her, dripping down her leg as he pulls out of her. Kurama doesn't wait, not even for one second, to grab her back and turn her around until her back is facing her. He hears her yell out his name in surprise, but he ignores her, and growls out, "I'm not done yet, Botan."

She looks over her shoulder to stare at him with wide eyes, "I'm not going to stop even if you beg me," he warns her, his emerald eyes dark and for a moment, Botan thinks she sees them glint gold for a second, only to revert back to their original color.

She licks her lips, and gives him a smile, "I know," and she arches her back up to him, letting him have the permission to take her even if he didn't ask for it, "and I won't beg… I want this, Kurama."

That's all he needs. He grabs both of her butt cheeks, squeezing the two soft mounds before thrusting into her again, relishing in her delicious moan as he does so.

Kurama's happy with how things are.

Even if the nature of their relationship is dark, they still love each other so deeply and madly. To the others, they might as well be insane but to Kurama, their relationship is anything but madness; it's passionate, accepting, loving, intense… and unique.

And even if it is madness,

at least,

he's glad she's his madness.

No one knows, no one will ever know. For they cannot understand how this two different souls feel for each other. How could they understand? They're so used to the idea of a couple being all sweet and romantic, and all 'fairytale'-like.

He grabs a fistful of her hair, tugging at the strands until she meets his gaze, and he kisses her. "I love you," the words come out soft and full of love, even as he's fucking her senselessly.

Maybe he's already out of his mind without him realizing it.

But who cares?

She's his, and no one else's. She will not be touched by someone else, will not be taken by someone else. Only by him, Kurama, and not one soul can change that. He'll force her, break her, humiliate her… and love her, embrace her, all at the same time.

That's the reality,

and it isn't as pretty as one might think.

* * *

 **A/N:** So hey. I added an author's note at the end of it to inform some news. I've deleted Behind These Sapphire Eyes. Now it saddens me I have to do so, because it's my first crossover fic... but I had to. There's a reason behind it. And to those who have read it and been waiting for an update, I apologize in advance. For more details of what happened, you can click on my pen name, and skip to the bottom of my profile. I'm terribly sorry, I am disappointed too. I'll rewrite it as soon as I'm finished with my Kurama/Botan stories, which is this one, Camellia, Broken Lovers, and With a Dash of Honey. That's a long time, but I really don't feel like I want to write it right now and I'm sorry for that, as well. Anyways, ja ne... See you on my next update on any of my fics. Bye.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way.**

 **Chapter 3: Dominance**

"Here you go."

Kurama hands Yomi the papers, keeping them neatly arranged in a brown file. His face in an unreadable expression as he watches Yomi flips the papers and examines them one by one.

"You seem upset," Yomi's voice sounds composed as he says this, but Kurama catches on the slight amusement lying dormant in his tone and for a moment the fox demon wonders if this is some kind of game Yomi's playing with him to annoy him.

But his face doesn't change even if he feels differently inside.

Upset doesn't begin to cover it. What was Yomi thinking calling him by his communicator (they've made it six months back to easily contact each other if there is to be any trouble), and telling him to go all the way from his territory to his castle just for Kurama to give some papers he'd forgotten to hand over? It's ludicrous; if his territory and Yomi's domain had been close, he wouldn't mind it that much. But the problem is, that the two places aren't as close as he wishes. Yomi ought to know Kurama's not a morning person and doesn't need to disturb his sleep to begin with. And he could be in his bed, having a deep, relaxing sleep with Botan by his side right now, but no, he just had to get this done with.

It irritates him, but he doesn't show it. Instead of choking Yomi to death like he's thinking right now, Kurama decides against it and just keep his face unchanged, and his voice as calm as possible, "If you need anything, you know how to contact me," Kurama states all too formally, not answering Yomi's earlier question. The redhead turns around and makes to leave when a dark chuckle and the sound of Yomi's deep voice reaches his sensitive ears.

"I'll take that as a yes," Yomi taunts, his earlier inquiry justified by the fox demon's behavior. "Does it have anything to do with that blue haired ferry girl you have with you?"

Kurama's body instantly stiffened, as he turns around to look at Yomi with a surprised expression on his face. But his shock dies a couple of seconds after as he realizes Yomi isn't that stupid not to be aware about what's going on with him.

"If I don't know any better, I think you're spying on me," Kurama scoffs, a smirk tugging at his lips as he watches his demon partner's ears twitch at his words. Probably from annoyance, or amusement, but it could mean both. Kurama's not so sure, but neither one bothers him in fact.

"Ahh, you may think as you like, kitsune," Yomi says with the utmost tact he has, deciding not to indulge in Kurama's silly mind games. He knows his fox demon friend is only trying to make him tick, and it isn't going to work. Two hands come to clasp one another, and Yomi puts them under his chin as he continues, the corners of his mouth forming into a smirk of his own as his voice drips with interest, "Does the bratty spirit world prince know about your secret passionate affair?"

Kurama ignores Yomi's few obvious last words he's said as a deliberate attempt to poke fun at him and catch him off guard. "First of all, no, Koenma doesn't know, and I prefer to keep it that way, mind you," the redhead says as a simple response, running his fingers into his red strands of hair, "and second of all, it's not just an affair."

Yomi raises a curious eyebrow. "Oh?" he inquires. "Is that so?" Although the demon already knows what Kurama's trying to say, he's purposely making the latter state it out loud. Right in front of him.

"I care for her, Yomi. In more ways than just a friend, and I intend on keeping the relationship I have with Botan a secret," Kurama's first statements had been stated in a soft, gentle voice as if he's remembering the blue-haired deity of death, but his last statement comes out as a fair warning, tinted with that same menace Yomi's familiar with for years.

"Yes, well, you have no need to worry. I won't tell a single soul," Yomi gives him his word and that's enough for Kurama. Demons aren't to be trusted, the redhead knows better than that, but he also knows Yomi's fairly aware of the consequences if this secret was to be broadcast in public.

Kurama smirks. "Something told me you know more than you look, I guess it was true," he states out of the blue, and Yomi let out an amused chuckle in return. If he had eyes, there would be a touch of mirth in them right now.

"Yes, but I don't know more than I want to know," Yomi responses mysteriously, which causes the redhead to frown and wonder what he means. Yomi's lips turns upwards into a smile, probably too twisted for anyone's taste but Kurama's grown used to it by now, except he says the thing that makes Kurama's blood boil the most, "I've been wondering how she is… in bed. If I could break her, and make her beg, you know…" Yomi doesn't really wonder all those things as he knows she belongs to Kurama, but being one who is aware of Kurama's possessiveness, he can't help but want to see how the fox demon would react.

If he'll snap.

And he does. "Cut it out, Yomi," Kurama growls out dangerously, "I am not amused by your words. You come near her, and I swear, I'll make you feel pain in ways you've never felt before," he warns, his tone menacing and full of blood lust, even if Yomi is in fact one of his partners.

Yomi's smile visibly widens. "Why yes, I can see how much you care for this girl now. And you don't have to be alarmed; I won't do anything. I just… wanted to see how you'd react, that's all."

Kurama's anger quickly dissipates, and Yomi can't tell you how glad he is when the fox demon finally calms down, the bloodlust that had been in him disappearing in few moments as soon as he said that. Now he has no doubt he could win in a fight against Kurama, but he doesn't think he wants a fight with him. The fox demon, despite the fact he's weaker than Yomi is even though he's strong, is cunning… and he knows for certain Kurama knows ways to make his life hell. Without having to kill him or defeat him in a battle.

Kurama's smirk returns, and he whips around, finally deciding it's time to leave and go back to where Botan is, which is in his territory. He has no doubt in his mind that she hasn't left the place yet even if she's woken up; he'd make it clear to her once what her punishment would be if she'd ever leave without telling him first.

"Goodbye, Yomi. I will see you later," those are his left words before he closes the door behind him.

* * *

Kurama can't help the smile that stretches on his face as he watches Botan who has her back facing him and still not realizing his presence in the cave as she ties her hair up in her usual ponytail… giving him quite a good view of pearl white neck. The skin there begs for his touch, and he gives it. His arm extends to wrap firmly around her waist, relishing in the way her body nearly jumps but unconsciously rub her back against his chest, and the pleasant sound of her surprise cry of 'Kurama!'.

He bends his head down and bites hard on her neck, drawing out a pleasured moan from the deity of death. She pulls her hair back to give him better access, feeling her own blood trickle down her collarbone and feeling his warm, wet tongue licking it clean. Oh, how she loves what he's doing to her.

But she's instantly reminded that she's received a call from Koenma earlier before he had come back, the spirit world prince demanding her presence in the spirit world immediately as he needs her to get some duties done. And she's not sure if Kurama… _ohh_ … keeps nipping and sucking at her neck like that, she'd be there on time, knowing perfectly well the sensual touch would lead to something more… sensual.

"W-wait," she stutters out in a shaky voice, and makes an attempt to pull away. He nearly doesn't let her, but he does, and she's inwardly relieved by that. She turns around until she's facing him and tells him, "Koenma needs me in spirit world right now."

Kurama let out a frustrated groan, disappointed that he's being rejected. Something in his pants couldn't wait to get out, and now, Koenma had to ruin everything. " _I_ need you, Botan," Kurama emphasizes, as his voice croaks in desperation, "in here, in my arms."

Botan gulps down a lump, her heart thumping loudly at his words. She blushes a deep shade of red, and looks down to the ground, where her feet is. "I-I'm sorry, but I have to go. For all I know, there might be souls wandering around in human world waiting for me to collect them… and it's not good if I don't go."

Kurama's face visibly darkens, to which she responses by cupping his two cheeks in her hands, her palms radiating warmth into his skin and he nuzzles his nose against them. His initially darkened exterior vanished in mere moments at the feeling of her, only to come back when she pulls her hands away.

"You know it's my job to collect souls and send them to where they belong… You have to understand, Kurama."

Oh, but he doesn't. A low, dangerous growl erupts from his throat, and she nearly backs away, but is quickly stopped by Kurama, who grabs her by the hands and pulls them to his body, making them slid into his shirt, as if silently ordering her to touch him, but she doesn't and tugs her hands back. Kurama's disappointed by her actions, but doesn't show it, and merely says, "You should quit."

"I don't have anywhere else to go, Kurama," she whispers, her voice almost inaudible but he hears it very clearly, thanks to his high hearing senses. "Spirit world is my home."

She doesn't understand why he's being so impossible. It's not like she's not going to come back. She will, she always will. Why can't he understand that she's not going anywhere? She's not leaving him.

"It isn't," Kurama whispers back, raising a hand to his beloved's face and running a thumb soothingly over the skin of her cheek, "You have this place. You can always come back. In fact, I want you to stay here instead. Leave spirit world, and stay here, with me." He grabs her hand into his, pulls it up to his face and gives the back of her hand a small peck of his lips. "You know I want you to do that."

Botan tugs her hand away from his grasp harshly, letting out a bitter laugh. "Stay here? And then what? I'll be locked in this cave like a caged bird; you'd never let me see another living soul. This place would be a prison, not a home," the words come out forced out of her lips. She doesn't know why she's saying this, but he hurt her. Why did he have to say those things?

"Botan…"

"Anyway, it doesn't matter," she cuts him off, ignoring the slightly hurt look on his face. She doesn't want to ignore it though; but she knows if she let things go his way this morning, she would disappoint her friend, and those poor souls. "I have to go now. You know I'll come back, Kurama," she says in a sweet voice, cupping his cheek.

"I know you will, Botan," Kurama sighs, "and I'm sorry that I hurt you with my words." His eyes close for a moment, before opening again, and they have this serious look in the deep emeralds, as he tells her, "but you must understand my desire to have you. I'm… afraid, that I'd lose you. I mean, you're leaving me right now to take care of my own problem," she momentarily blushes at the mere mention of his 'problem' already knowing what it is he's talking about, "to go work for Koenma."

"I wouldn't have to," Botan retorts, "but those poor souls are counting on me. They need me. I-I love you, and I accept you for who you are, no matter how twisted you are at times… but sometimes you need to let me do what I want. You have to understand that, Kurama."

The redhead heaves out another sigh, feeling her pull her arm away and he's slowly missing the warmth of her skin against his cheek. "I know," he reluctantly complies, "I'll try."

Botan smiles. 'Try' doesn't really guarantee that he'll understand, but 'try' is better than a no. She's glad he even bothers to think of trying anyway. The fox demon's so used with people doing anything he wishes after all.

"Thank you," she mouths, and gives him a simple, brief kiss that he wishes could've been something more than simple and brief, but he doesn't intensify the kiss as much as he wants to. She pulls back, and winks at him, "I'll come back at night."

He nods his head, returning her smile with his own. "Yes, I know," he simply answers, and watches as she materializes her oar, hops on it, and flies her way out of the cave; his territory, the only place they could be with each other.

Kurama heaves out a sigh, his eyes twitching slightly. His erection is still hard, and that's a problem. He doesn't like to solve that problem by himself. But he knows he doesn't have a choice, so he takes off his belt, zips his zipper, and let his trousers slip down, leaving it lying on the dirty ground of his cave, as he flops down to the bed.

His hand takes a hold of his long, thick shaft, stroking hard and fast and he groans out his pleasure. The feeling so good, he's immediately losing grasp of reality… Although he doesn't like pleasuring himself; as he loves it more when Botan's the one doing it, but as he imagines her doing this to him… stroking him hard and fast, putting him in her mouth… and licking the head of his shaft, and sucking him dry… The images begin to intensify, and he's now imagining himself inside her, fucking her senseless like there's no tomorrow.

And it doesn't take him long before he comes, Botan's name coming out of his lips in a cry of pleasure at the impact of his orgasm, and his breathing heavy.

Botan doesn't understand how intense his desire for dominance over her. How he wants her to himself, keep her locked up in here… He's willing to kill everything that goes in the way, everything around them, if that meant having her with him all the time. He knows its sick to be this controlling, but that's just how he is. Although he loves her, and cannot do such a thing, without her hating him even more.

He sighs. Standing up from the bed, he puts his trousers back on, unzips them and stares at the white essence on the bed which he could only recognize as his own sperm. He makes an unpleasant face, not because he's not used to seeing his own cum, but because of the thought that it wasn't Botan who made him come, but himself. And the thought doesn't settle well with him.

 _You have no idea how mad I am for you, Botan_ , he muses to himself as starts to walk out of the cave, all the while putting his belt on again. Kurama thinks he needs to go on his usual 'hunt' again, and it'll probably end up with more dead bodies for him to feed his plants with, considering all the frustration he's feeling right now.

Maybe this will calm him down.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way.**

 **Chapter 4: Jealousy**

"Stay away, monster!"

A cynical smile stretches on Youko's face, as he tilts his head to the side in amusement, touching his cold golden eyes with slight mirth. "Do you really think that will absolutely stop me from killing you?" he asks, his voice menacing and taunting at the same time.

The green colored demon's body stiffens, knowing those simple words would not save him. This fox demon in front of him is undoubtedly strong and dangerous, so he does the only thing he can do, the first thing that crosses his mind;

which is to protect his child.

He grabs his son, holding the demon child in his arms as tightly as possible as if he's clinging on to his own life. His son wails, face contorted in nothing but pure fear. "You can take anything you want! Just—just leave!" he tries again even though he knows his efforts are futile. Nothing else matters to him right now besides his child's safety.

"Well then," Youko lets out a dark chuckle, advancing towards his victim. The green demon backs away, only to stop when Youko tugs at his shoulder, and in one swift movement, pulls the child off of him. He doesn't know how it happened, but before he realizes it, his son's head is tear apart without mercy, and the now headless body of his child falls onto the ground with a loud thud. A chuckle is all he hears, and the words, "Why don't I take him instead?"

He lets out a loud, piercing wail of his son's name before a hand with sharp claws stabs into the left of his chest, squeezing his heart from the inside, the last words of his killer echoing in his ears before his last breath, "I told you nothing can stop me from taking your life," and he feels the hand inside his chest grips tighter, until his heart is completely destroyed. The demon dies, his body falling unceremoniously onto the ground, right beside his headless son's body as Youko tugs his hand out.

Blood drips from pale white fingers, and Youko laughs, warm liquid soaking his white clothing and coloring it red.

* * *

Kurama enters his home in the demon world, his footsteps echoing in the cave as he walks even as his clothes are soaked with blood; and not his own. The redhead senses a presence in his cave as soon as he takes a few steps in, but knowing who it is, he is not alarmed and just calmly asks, "What are you doing here, Yuei?"

"Just checking up on you," a familiar deep voice tells him, tinting with slight curiosity and amusement and Kurama watches as a silhouette steps out of the shadows. He is greeted by the sight of a red-haired man with his arms crossed, looking as though he's the same age as his human side is, but Kurama knows he's a demon. "So, what were you up to?"

"Nothing much," Kurama answers simply, his voice holding no interest at all in a conversation. Yuei's a demon who just recently started working for Yomi; Kurama has just known him for four months, albeit Yuei's new, the redhead can tell that Yomi, along with Yoda, has taken quite a liking on the cat demon.

Yuei's red cat ears twitch slightly, and a not so normal grin spreads on his face; a look Kurama can compare with his Botan's Cheshire-like grin. Yuei follows behind Kurama, as the latter saunters calmly over to his closet, where he keeps his change of clothes. "Yes, I can tell from the blood on your shirt that you were doing 'nothing much'," comes his sarcastic remark to Kurama's earlier statement.

"Well, you have good observation, Yuei. I'm sure you know what I was doing without having the necessary to ask," Kurama spits out harshly, his emerald eyes glaring daggers at the cat demon who is by then, standing beside him.

"Whoa," Yuei lets out a laugh, and holds his arms up in defense, "No need to be touchy. Just asking."

"And so you've asked." Closing the door to his closet, Kurama turns around, walking back and throws his white buttoned shirt and blue pants onto his bed before whipping around again to look at Yuei. "Now if you will give me the pleasure of being alone, you can excuse yourself." Kurama's already irritated enough about what happened earlier in the morning with him and Botan; he does not need to be bothered right now.

Yuei arches one eyebrow at Kurama, wondering for a moment if he'd gone and done something to annoy Kurama until he's kicking him out. But oh well… Yuei shrugs his shoulders, and makes a move to leave, only to stop at the sound of a feminine voice that reaches his ears,

"Kurama, I'm back!"

Yuei hears Kurama mutter something under his breath which suspiciously sounded like 'Fuck', but he doesn't acknowledge it as he squints his eyes to look in the shadows. Just when he's about to get a clear view on who the newcomer is, a blue haired ferry girl with amethyst eyes steps forward and out of the shadows, now making the cat demon wonder who she is.

"I've brought something with…" Botan doesn't seem to realize another presence in the cave besides herself and Kurama, until she looks up from the plastic bag she had been looking at, and meets the brown eyes of a confused red haired cat demon, "…me…" her voice trails off, as she stares back with an equally bewildered face.

This lasts a few more moments in silence, before Botan finally breaks it off, "And… who might you be…?" she inquires in curiosity, trying to remember if Kurama has any cat demon friends. She racks her brain, but nothing comes to mind.

Before Yuei can answer, Kurama beats him to it, "His name is Yuei. He's just recently started working for Yomi; he's a new comrade, I suppose," the redhead pauses for a moment before going on, "I've never told you about him."

Blue eyebrows furrow, and Botan turns her attention to Kurama. For the first time that night, she finally looks at him, and takes a silent note on the blood on his clothes. The thought that he has just came back from a hunt disturbs her; the smell of the disgusting red liquid entering her nose and making her want to vomit. But she shows no discomfort at all, and merely asks. "Why is that?"

Kurama shrugs his shoulders in a nonchalant manner. "Why did I need to tell you? It's not like who works for Yomi has anything to do with you anyway," is his only response, and for a brief moment, Botan catches a look of suspicion in his emerald orbs. "Since when have you been interested?"

The deity of death can't help but inwardly sigh at her lover's behavior, knowing fully well that its his possessiveness and pessimistic side taking over, "I'm not. It's just that, you might as well told me about him, if you're going to take him home with you," she says, slightly annoyed.

"I wasn't planning to let him in," Kurama argues right back, " _He_ was the one who came without my invitation, for your information," his voice holds the same irritation in Botan's, unsure why his lover is talking to him in such a tone.

Botan's about to go up and argue back, only to be cut short when Yuei chimes in, "Now now… don't fight." He waves his hands in front of him, a sweatdrop forming at the back of his head. He has no clue as to why they're fighting about such trivial thing, especially Kurama, who always seem as if nothing little can bother him. But as he takes a better look at Botan, he can't deny that she is, in a matter of fact, attractive. A grin tugs at the corners of his mouth, as he looks up and down Botan's form, oblivious to the dangerously narrowed emerald eyes watching him. "Kurama's right, it's not like he wanted me here, in fact, he was trying to kick me out before you came into the picture, milady," he continues in a slight flirtatious voice, which goes unnoticed by the ferry girl.

Botan beams, her face brightening up in a bright smile, "Well okay. Anyway, my name is Botan, and it's a pleasure to meet you, Yuei!" she introduces herself in a cheery voice, and extends her hand in greeting, to which Yuei accepts, and they shake hands.

The cat demon squeezes Botan's hand, loving how soft her skin is. His grin visibly widens, "Yes, the same goes for me," he purrs, to which this time, Botan is aware, except she thinks nothing of it, thinking it's something normal cat demons do. Like a way they speak sometimes.

She tries to let go of Yuei's hand, only to feel bewildered when the cat demon, in return, doesn't. His hold on her hand is tight, as if trying to keep it there. She smiles nervously at the Yuei, who simply gives a friendly grin as if he doesn't know what he's doing. Botan's beginning to panic, already knowing that if they hold hands any longer, a certain fox demon would get jealous. And she wouldn't want that. On instinct, she spares a brief glance at Kurama, who is now sporting an unpleasant face; his eyes has already lost all humanity in them and replaced by something she can only recognize as jealousy, his mouth forming a thin line and she's visibly aware of the way he clenches his fists. Fear creeps up her skin at the sight, and she tugs at her hand a second time, and is overcame by relief, when Yuei finally complies, and lets her go.

"Anyway, I must be going," Yuei suddenly blurts out, as he slides his hands into his pockets. As he does so, he realizes a change in Kurama energy… the fox demon's energy has sparked, and for some reason, he can feel eyes staring heatedly at him, the feeling of something malicious enters his heart at that exact moment as he muses to himself as to why Kurama's being so angry… until a thought crosses his mind. Yuei's brown eyes widen in realization, now fully aware as to why the redhead's behavior has changed, and what Botan and his relationship is. _Well, I guess I messed with the wrong woman, huh?_

Botan nods her head once, mustering up her will to force out a polite smile, "Yes, it's better you leave… I'm sure you have other business to attend to," the ferry girl replies as tactfully as she possibly can, despite the uncomfortable way her hands are sweating at the fear and the realization that she's about to receive her punishment again.

Yuei nods in agreement, and wonders for a moment if he say goodbye to Kurama before he leaves. They aren't what people would say 'great friends' but Yuei sort of feels obliged to do so, especially after trespassing into the fox demon's lair, but after great consideration at the fact that Kurama's not in a 'good mood', Yuei decides against it and just walks out of the cave. As he exits, a thought occurs in his head; _Such a shame too, she's a beautiful creature, that Botan._

When Botan's sure that Yuei has already left, she drops the act; the smile falling from her face and she licks her dry lips to wet them a bit. She doesn't bother to look at Kurama, and instead just listen as she hears him gets up, the bed making a creaking sound as he does so. Her heart starts to beat faster, as she listens more, and hears the sound of clothes rustling – probably Kurama changing his clothes.

And still she doesn't look.

Scared to look, actually.

She swears she wants to run. Kurama's surely furious at her, especially after rejecting his advances earlier that morning, and not to mention, the interaction between Yuei and her a while ago… but she knows she can't go anywhere and just gulps in fear as Kurama's cold voice reaches her ears,

"Come here, Botan."


	5. Chapter 5

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho**

 **Chapter 5: Punishment**

Botan doesn't move, not even an inch, from where she stands. She doesn't even budge, too terrified of what's going to happen next to do as he says.

Kurama's eyes narrow dangerously at this, his emeralds changing to a gold color, her disobedience adding more fuel to his already angry state of mind. Not only isn't she moving, she's not looking at him either.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, Botan," he growls out, his order coming out as a fair warning to the deity of death not to push him over the edge.

The blue haired ferry girl nearly jumps and backs away in fear at the sound, making her body tremble slightly in fear. For a moment, she wonders if she should run away… she can still summon her oar and bolt for the exit,… but she knows that will only make things worse, and even if she escapes, Kurama will surely catch up to her in no time. Despair fills her heart, as she knows she can't flee from the inevitable; since when has she been able to prevent herself from being a victim to his so-called 'punishments' anyway? At the thought that she can do nothing to protect herself by now, she raises her head slowly – almost dreadfully – to meet Kurama's gaze… and as instantly as she does, she regrets doing so.

Kurama sits on the bed, now wearing a white buttoned shirt and a pair of blue pants, but instead of zipping his pants, he leaves it unzipped… and his hands hold in their possession his belt. The mere sight of the belt sends shivers down her spine, almost as if she's aware of what's about to happen – how he would punish her. But what scares her the most, is the look on his face – soft emerald eyes now replaced by a pair of cold, gold smoldering ones, and she can't help but notice the sharp fangs poking out of his mouth, almost as if he's about to bite her any second now.

"Now come here," Kurama says again, this time in a more gentle voice. But Botan knows better not to trust that tone, already aware that what he has in mind is the complete opposite. Kurama's expression hardens when she doesn't move yet again, "Or do you want me to make you come?" he threatens, the initial soft tone in his voice earlier now replaced by a more menacing one.

Gold eyes watch as her trembling feet forces her to walk over to where he is; the mere smell of her fear filling him with pride and sadistic delight. After all, he always likes them better when they're afraid. A smirk tugs at his lips, as she finally sits beside him on the bed,

"You know what's going to happen, now don't you, darling?" he inquires in a mockingly sweet tone, reaching up to touch her face, ignoring the way she flinches at the feeling of his skin against hers.

She nods furiously, her head bobbing up and down as Botan tries not to whimper in fear, knowing that the sound would only excite him even more.

"Good," Kurama simply states, before standing up from the bed and walking to the closet again. This time checking inside for the thing he's trying to find and he does, as he slips one hand in his black pants, pulling out the juice Suzuki's given him years ago. His smirk visibly widens as he remembers the wonderful times he has wrongly used it for his own enjoyment – killing demons and forcing Botan in bed in Youko form sometimes – Ah… the memories. But now is not the time for reminiscing, as he has a much more important 'matter' to deal with. "However, I have other plans for you tonight, my sweet," he growls, sparing a look over his shoulder to see her staring back at him in trepidation. He clenches his belt tightly in his other hand, his fingers itching to use it on his lover.

The redhead gives her a twisted smile, turning around so she can get a full view as to what he's holding. Amethyst eyes widen, and it takes every ounce of courage she can muster up not to bolt out of there. "K-Kurama… please, don't…" Botan's voice comes out as a small plea, almost as if she'd burst into tears if this keeps up any longer. Even though she's already used to getting… taken by force by Youko – who is more crueler than Kurama everytime he does it – she can't deny that she's even more afraid now, especially at the thought of the silver haired fox taking over and punishing her instead.

She doesn't know what she did that made her deserve to earn this… She doesn't deserve this. It wasn't her who was flirting – it was Yuei. What the hell did she do wrong? … But she knows that even if she didn't do anything remotely wrong, Kurama would still punish her.

Because he's jealous.

Kurama doesn't say anything in response to her plea. The redhead just opens the bottle of the juice, ignoring a part of him that tells him to stop and complying with a more dominant part of him that tells him to keep going. He does, and in one swift motion, he swallows the content in the bottle. A familiar taste fills his taste buds, and in instant, he can feel his muscles flexing… white, furry ears popping out at the top of his head, the feeling of his tail appearing at his behind… and his hair growing longer, the red strands now colored in silver… In just mere moments, he's Youko – Youko Kurama – once again.

"Ah, it's good to be back," a now deeper and colder voice says, as Youko lets out a dark chuckle, "I'm glad Shuichi let me take control – it was getting boring not having anything to do," he goes on, a smirk now forming at the corners of his mouth, as he looks up, golden eyes locking with amethyst ones. "And I can't tell you how absolutely overjoyed I am to see you again, my deity."

Botan gulps once, trying to slow down her heartbeat as she knows the fox demon will be able to hear it. Unfortunately for her, she fails miserably and Youko's ears twitch slightly at the loud, fast thumping sound of her heart. "Scared, are we?"

She doesn't say anything, and just looks away from his gaze as she tries to ignore how cold her hands have gotten, and how bad her body's trembling. This is not good. "N-no…"

"Don't lie," Youko's voice cuts through her like a knife, cold and menacing as it reaches her ears, "You know I don't like it when you do that."

Botan's lips are white, as she part them, and croaks out a small whimper, "I-I'm sorry…!"

Youko's lips form a cynical smile. "Don't be sorry. This makes _punishing_ you even more… exhilarating," he slurs out his words, sauntering over to the bed where the girl is. He raises his hand to cup Botan's cheek and she almost flinches, and slaps his hand away at the cold feeling of his skin. He tilts his head to the side, "Wouldn't you agree?" and his eyes observe as Botan looks down at her hands, trying to avoid his gaze. His smile widens considerably at the sight, and he pulls away, his hands coming now coming to rest at either of his sides.

"Take off your clothes," comes his stern command, his voice firm, as if he's silently telling her not to disobey him the umpteenth time that night.

Botan does as she is told to; taking off her pink with white stripes t-shirt, before her hands comes in contact with the fabric of her pants. She hesitates for a brief second, before finally unhooking it, and letting the clothing material fall neatly on the ground. Her shaking hands reach up to her back, this time unhooking her bra, and getting it off of her. The only thing she has to cover up her most sacred place is her white underwear – and for some reason, she doesn't want to take it off.

Gold eyes narrow in irritation, as Youko notices her silent disobedience. He will not tolerate it, and before Botan can realize what just happened, one clawed hand reaches, and tugs away her panties, the undergarments now shred to pieces, leaving a few bloody wounds on Botan's right thigh as Youko's claws accidentally scratched her and this earns a surprised gasp from the deity in return.

He doesn't wait for Botan's shock to die down, and merely orders, "Now get on your knees and raise your hips up high."

Botan's body stiffens at the sound of his voice, but she does as he says, getting on her knees on the bed, and arching her butt in the air. It's cold, and she resists the urge to cover herself up as a breeze touches her naked hips. She waits in dread, her fingers gripping the sheets, and her nails digging into them, as…

PANG!

… the pain of a belt whipping her behind causes her to scream. She lets out a shaky whimper, closing her eyes and trying to hold back the tears threatening to come out, unwilling to show how weak she is and how much that one spank hurts.

He whips her hips a second time, and Botan whimpers again, nearly tries to escape, trying to get off the bed, only to have Youko forcefully pull her back, his left arm now wrapping around her stomach and preventing her from fleeing. Youko's other hand, which has the belt, raises up high and he spanks her again with it – this time much harder, the sound of the material of his belt smacking against Botan's skin, and the loud pained scream of his lover sending shivers of delight down his spine.

"Y-Youko, please…" Botan practically begs, "No more… no more… I'm sorry for making you jealous… but please, please stop…" she cries, the tears she had been trying to hold back so hard, now cascading down her cheeks. She can stand him raping her, she can stand him yelling at her… For God's sake, he could do anything he wants with her… but not this… not this. She can't stand this. The humiliation is too much for her to bear. No one has ever done this to her; not even him… She never thought he would go this far to humiliate her, but she was wrong. How could he…? She prays silently that he listens to her.

To which he doesn't. "Now now, Botan… you and I both know I'm not done yet," Youko whispers hotly against her ears, as he bends down, earning a hopeless cry from her at his words. Blood starts to fill her nostrils… it's not even the fifth time yet, and she's already bleeding.

"Four," he counts, and spanks her again. Botan shut her eyes tight.

PANG! "Five," and she's curling her toes.

"Six." Botan shakes her head rapidly, and cry out his name, as if pleading him to stop, to which he ignores her completely.

"Seven." Another 'pang' sound loudly echoes in the cave.

"Eight." She bites her lower lip.

"Nine." Blood fills her taste buds, entering her mouth and coating her tongue with its nauseating taste. She was biting her lip so hard it's now bleeding.

"Ten," and Botan's amethyst orbs widen in pain and shock at how much that one hurt. More so than the spanks before, the tenth nearly made her bite her tongue when she attempted suppress the bloody scream that had almost left her. Her legs start to shake, as blood begins to trickle down her thigh and no doubt - on the bed.

And that's it; he lets go of her, loosening his hold on her body and in one swift movement, she backs away from him, her back now against the headboard of the bed – trying to get as far away as she can possibly can from him.

Youko throws the belt away, not really caring where it ends up. He crawls over to her, to which she responses by trying to get off the bed, only to be stopped halfway by the fox demon, as he grab her wrist in a death grip, and pulls her down. Before she knows it, he's on top of her, causing her to hits him hard on the chest.

"I hate you, I hate you, I hate you…" she whispers over and over again, her words shaky as she cries, the tears falling uncontrollably down her face, as she hits him over and over again each time she utters the three words.

Youko ignores the pangs of hurt in his heart. Her punches hurt – not that he hasn't experienced more pain – but what hurts him the most are her hateful words, tinted with anger, humiliation… and sadness. He knows he's gone and done it now; he went too far… But he can't help himself. The dizzying sweet temptation of wanting to punish her had clouded his mind. He does nothing but hugs her, even as she tries to get him off of her, and makes no excuses at all, no apologies are spoken… as he knows what he just did, was what he wanted to do and nothing could change that, even if he regrets indulging in his own desires.

Botan pushes, hits against his chest… and still he doesn't let go, embracing her in a tight hold, as if silently trying to comfort her.

They both know those words meant nothing, even if they hurt them both… No matter how many times he's humiliated her and crossed the line, she'd still love him… and Youko and Botan both know, that even after what happened tonight, she'd still come back to him.

After all, she loves him too much to leave him.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way.**

 **Chapter 6: The Next Morning**

Opening her amethyst eyes slowly, Botan blinks a few times to clear her blurry vision, and when she can see perfectly, she sees Kurama, who she doesn't know when had reverted back to his human form, and has his back facing her. She stares as she realizes that he's talking on the phone, giving a few nods and muttering out 'yes' a few times. For a moment, she wonders who he's speaking on the phone with, but decides to ask him later. All this she thinks without taking her eyes off of him… and the longer she stares, the more the memories of last night's events begin to enter her mind.

Youko didn't do anything to her after punishing her – he just held her in his arms as she cried her eyes out, and yelled at him for being such a prick. She doesn't remember when she had fallen asleep, but she does remember how Youko had kissed her forehead lovingly – something the fox demon almost always never does.

Botan raises a hand to her face, her fingers reaching up to trace the spot below her eyes. The skin there feels sore – perhaps because of how much she cried last night. She drops her hand, and watches as Kurama finally bids goodbye to the person on the other line, and turns around to meet her gaze. He gives her a small smile, to which she responses by smiling back. "Ah, I see you're awake."

"Yes," Botan replies, trying to get up from the bed to fetch some water for them. She always does that, when she's here in Kurama's lair – it's almost like a routine for her. But she fails miserably, as a pain shots up her hips, and she flops back down to the bed, a low, pained groan erupting from her throat. She buries her face in the pillow, gritting her teeth, as the realization that the pain is from the spanking she got last night hits her like a ton of bricks.

"You should sit still," the redhead tells her, his voice tinted in something Botan can recognize as a mixture of worry and guilt. "Your… wounds haven't heal yet," she hears him say, and still, she doesn't bother to lift her head from the pillow.

Kurama smiles apologetically, even if the one he's sending it to doesn't see it and has her face stuffed in his pillow. Last night was humiliating to her, and the wounds probably remind her of what happened. For a fraction of a second, he feels like kicking himself in the shin for hurting her but only for a fraction of a second – as he realizes that he's done that many times already, and even one kick wouldn't be enough to atone for his mistakes. Still, he knows as much as he regrets it, he's going to do it again and again. His desires reflect who he is, after all. And trying to resist them will only make matters worse. He wishes he doesn't have to see her like this everytime he hurts her though.

It breaks his heart.

The redhead decides to help her the only possible way he can; which is to heal her. It is a bit ironic, seeing as he's the one who made those wounds on his beloved's body appear, but it is the only thing he can do. It won't fix anything – probably – but it's the least he can do. He grabs a small plate, a glass of water and a few leaves of a Makai healing plant, and put the two ingredients on the table beside the bed.

Botan lifts her head at the sound of something being placed on the table, greeted by the sight of Kurama crushing a few leaves, and putting them in a small plate, before pouring water in it. She watches as the fox demon chants something under his breath; something she can't quite hear, and even if she can, she doubts she would be able to understand. Curious, Botan inquires, "What are you doing, Kurama?" as soon as his chant is over.

Kurama looks at her, a smile forming on his lips as relief overcame him at the sound of her voice and the sight of her full face. "Making some herbs to heal you with," he replies simply, before taking a seat on an unoccupied space on the bed, and before she can asks anything else, he dips his fingers in the plate, and starts to rub the substance on her wounds.

Botan winces a bit at the feeling of something against her hips, but proceeds to ask anyway, "Does it work?"

She hears a small, amused chuckle erupt from Kurama's throat as he answers her question, "Honey, I won't be doing this if it doesn't," and he continues to dip his fingers in the plate again, and repeat the same process he did a while ago.

The blue haired deity smiles a little at his words, joy overcoming her at the thought of her lover doing this to her. He's so sweet… even though he's a bit too cruel for his own good.

Kurama stares at the red, bloody wounds on her butt, now slightly angry and excited to see them. He's furious at himself for letting his anger get the better of him, and yet, still happy to see what he's done to her. He admits he's quite the sadistic demon – loving the view even as he's trying to heal her. He remembers – the delight Youko and him had felt at the sight of his belt smacking at her skin, leaving an angry red mark on her behind in return. Remembers how good it felt to hear the wonderful sounds she made, how exhilarating it was to hold her down as she tried to escape him. A part of him wants to squeeze the soft mounds as he rubs the herbs all over her wounds, but he tries not to comply and resists the urge to do anything more than heal her.

"You do know that I can heal myself, right?" Botan suddenly speaks, reminding him of her healing powers. It's been bugging her a bit even if she enjoys his lovely treatment – but she doesn't want to trouble him.

"I know," Kurama replies all too knowingly, the smile that had never left his face widening slightly, "but I wouldn't want you to waste your spirit energy. Plus, this herb is almost as good as your healing powers, sweetheart. A few more hours, and you'll be as good as new."

The deity of death forms a pout on her mouth. "Aww… But I could've used—"

Kurama cuts her off, "No. This will work just fine, Botan. Don't argue with me," his voice firm and gentle at the same time.

Botan lets out a girlish giggle, and finally gives up and complies, "Okay, okay…" As she continues to feel Kurama's hand rubbing the gooey substance on her ass, out of the blue she remembers what she had saw earlier that morning and questions in curiosity, "Anyway, Kurama dear, who was it you were talking to on the phone just now?"

The redhead blinks for a few times, before a look of recognition passes his face, almost as if he just recalled something. "Ah, yes. I almost forgot. That was Yusuke, he wants us to go camping with him today. Of course, our other friends – including Hiei – will be there, too, as it's a trip for our gang. I guess Yusuke thinks it's appropriate, as we rarely even hang out together these days," he gives her a long explanation.

Botan brings a finger to her chin, rubbing it thoughtfully, "Yeah, that's true," she agrees, referring to Kurama's last statement about the whole gang not spending as much time together as they used to. After all, her demon boyfriend has been busy with his businesses in demon world, and she has souls to collect almost everyday. "Well, I'm not sure if Koenma will give me a day off," she goes on, thinking of her pushy boss.

"He already has," Kurama surprisingly says, and this earns a shock and bewildered expression from Botan, to which he responses by laughing slightly at the look, amused, his eyes dancing with mirth, "Yusuke told me a while ago that he went to spirit world and demanded Koenma to let you have a day off. Our poor friend, Koenma, had complied only when Yusuke threatened to choke him to death if he didn't," he explains, a sweatdrop forming at the back of his head as he recalls what Yusuke just said earlier on the phone.

Botan sweatdrops too, and lets out an awkward laugh, "Wow, that Yusuke… I can actually see him doing that." A thoughtful look once again crosses her face, as one thought occurs in her head, "But wait, how did Yusuke get to spirit world anyway?"

"He went there with Hinageshi," Kurama tells her, and she makes a knowing look, an 'o' forming at her mouth in understanding.

"I see."

Kurama gets up all of a sudden, and she gives him a questioning expression, asking him silently what he's doing. The redhead merely gives her a loving smile, "All done."

It takes Botan a few moments to catch on to what he meant, before she finally understand, and tries to look over her shoulder at her hips. There is gooey green substance rubbed all over her wounds, causing her to make an unpleasant face at the sight. It grosses her out to see such a thing on her skin – it even feels gross – but Botan doesn't do anything about it and just tells herself to wait a few hours for her wounds to heal completely. She takes a silent note to herself as she realizes that her butt doesn't hurt as much as it did when she tried to get up.

Maybe this isn't so bad.

She watches as Kurama bends down and gives her a small peck on the forehead. Her eyes closes for a moment to enjoy the brief sensation of his warm lips on her skin, only to open again when he pulls away. The anger, humiliation and hurt she felt before disappears as soon as he kissed her, and she can't help but think – as she stares back at Kurama's loving stare…

… Really, she can't stay mad with him for too long.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Ugly Truth**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way.**

 **Chapter 7: Secrets, Secrets**

"What's taking him so damn long?" Botan grudgingly mutters to no one else in particular, and starts to bang on the door of Yusuke's and Keiko's house, where the two had started living together. When there's no one to answer the door for the umpteenth time that morning, Botan stares at the door for what seem like the longest time… until… "GAHHH! Where the hell are they? Yusuke told us to meet up here, right?" she starts to scream, practically on the verge of pulling her hair out.

Kurama, who has been standing beside her and listening to her ranting on and on and banging at the door the entire time, can't help but sweatdrop at his lover's childish behavior. "Now now, Botan… I'm sure Yusuke's busy taking care of something important," he tries to reason with her to calm her down. He and Botan had both arrived at the spot separately, not wanting to arise any suspicions in their friends.

Botan glares daggers at him, which results to him sweatdropping even more. To add salt to the injury, Kuwabara stomps towards the two and starts to ramble on his own rant, "Well, if Mr. Urameshi in there is _soooo_ 'busy' of taking care of some 'important' business, then he didn't need to call us over here!" the carrot top deadpans.

Kurama gives him an exasperated look that literally asks 'Really?', to which Kuwabara ignores completely. Yukina and him had arrived a while ago – before either Botan or Kurama came, and if Botan, who hasn't been standing outside the house as he has, then that would make him even more impatient than the ferry girl is. He had promised his beloved Yukina that she'd have a good time, and this is not really called having a good time. At all.

The sea-green haired demon tries to calm Kuwabara down. "Kazuma-kun, it's fine. We can wait a bit longer. I'm sure Yusuke-san or Keiko will answer the door sooner or later," she says with that usual sweet voice of hers.

And just with that little effort, the carrot top's face brightens up all of a sudden, "Yes, you're very true, Yukina-chan!" and he grabs her little hands in his bigger ones, with love in his eyes and a shade of red on his cheeks. Yukina, on the other hand, has no idea why her friend is suddenly acting so weird.

Meanwhile, a certain fox demon rolls his eyes at the scene. _Seriously,_ he muses indignantly to himself. He has been trying to talk some senses into his carrot top friend, telling him to be more patient, with more than a few wise words. But here Yukina comes, and says a few lines, and just like that – Kuwabara's acting like a completely different person. Of course, he knows Kuwabara cares very, very much for Yukina but… really? He inwardly sighs.

And when he turns to look at his lover, he can't help but sigh again. This time outwardly though. The ferry girl is sporting a ticked off look on her face, her eyes narrowed and her mouth forming a thin line, indicating her distaste. How he wishes he could have the same effect on Botan like Yukina has on Kuwabara.

Thankfully to him, the sound of footsteps reaching for the door reaches his ears, causing them to twitch ever so slightly. A relieved smile crosses his face, as he watches as the door opens at last. "Hello, Yusuke," he greets the delinquent with his usual polite voice.

"Oh hey, foxboy," Yusuke greets back with less politeness, and scratches the back of his head. "Sorry about that people. Had to take care of something back there," he apologizes, laughing nervously as Kuwabara and Botan both send him death glares, threatening to burn a hole into his head. Oh, if only looks could kill…

"Oh yeah?" Kuwabara inquires in sarcasm, crossing his arms over his chest. "And what the hell did you have to take care of that's so important that you kept us waiting out here like morons?"

"Yeah!" Botan agrees passionately. "You know how embarrassing it is when people give you weird looks? Your neighbors have been staring at us like we're crazy, banging on the door and standing here!" she shouts, her voice so loud Yusuke could've sworn he almost had his eardrums destroyed.

"Well, sorry," Yusuke grumbles under his breath, "I was busy trying to get Keiko's things in her bag. It's not my fault she packed too many stuff. I didn't ask her to," he argues.

"Oh, so now you're putting the blame on me?" a feminine voice speaks from behind Yusuke, and the delinquent almost jumps at the sound.

He turns around to see his soon to be wife, with her arms crossed and her face looking sternly at him. Yusuke rolls his eyes, "Yeah, well, if you hadn't—"

He doesn't get to finish whatever he has to say, as Keiko quickly cuts him off. "Well, Mr. Grubby Pants, it's not entirely my fault. I admit, it's partly my fault. But if you had gotten the door when I asked you to, this wouldn't have happened. But _nooo_ , you just had to be so goddamn egoistic. 'Not letting this stupid bag beat me', my ass…" the brunette mutters the last sentence, remembering a while ago in their shared bedroom, where Yusuke had stubbornly decided to get her things in the bag before even trying to get the door.

Yusuke goes up to say something, but is again cut off, this time by Kurama, who tries to calm them both down. Seriously, he doesn't want to hear them arguing right now. "Relax, the both of you. What's important is that you're here, and we can get going now," he tells them, ever the logical one in the group.

Botan, on the other hand, is quite amazed by how cool her lover still is, despite the fact he has been going through hell that morning – trying to calm her and Kuwabara, and now Yusuke and Keiko. Really, he never ceases to amaze her, no matter how many times she's seen him like this, or how she already knows he's always calm.

"Alright," Keiko complies, albeit reluctantly as she still has a few dialogues to say to her boyfriend, but no words are spoken as she doesn't want to trouble her friends further.

"Fine, fine, whatever…" while Yusuke just shrugs him off and says so nonchalantly. It takes him a few moments to finally realize that one of their friends isn't there yet. "Where's Hiei?" he asks, his question directed to Kurama, who is usually the only one who knows of the fire demon's whereabouts.

Kurama shrugs his shoulders in response. "I have no clue, but I'm sure he'll be there."

"Yeah! Let's just get going already. We don't have to waste more time waiting for the midget…" Kuwabara agrees ever so passionately, desperate to get their trip to the forest where they'd be camping at as soon as possible.

"Who the hell are you calling a midget?" a cold voice suddenly speaks behind him, causing Kuwabara to jump a few metres from the ground.

"Hiei! You little fucker!" the carrot top curses as the fire demon chuckles darkly at his reaction to his sudden appearance, much to Kuwabara's discomfort, meanwhile the others sweatdrop except Kurama who is just smiling awkwardly, at the scene.

"What's wrong, Kuwabara? You look like you've seen a ghost," Hiei taunts Kuwabara, earning a grunt from the latter in return who merely gives him an exasperated stare.

It's probably because Kuwabara just wants them to get going a lot quicker, because he doesn't argue right back.

* * *

"By the way, Yukina, I wonder why Genkai baa-san doesn't want to come with us?" Botan questions the sea green haired demon as soon as they step out of Kurama's car. She, Yukina, along with Kuwabara, had agreed to go with the redhead – mostly because Yusuke drives like a madman and Kurama was the safest choice.

"Ah, yes. I was wondering when anyone would ask," Yukina gives the ferry girl her famous sweet smile, as she says this, "Genkai baa-san said she was getting old, and she didn't want to walk around that much, even though she really wants to see you guys really much. She said to say hello though."

"Well, hello then," Botan replies humorously, a giggle erupting from her throat at her own joke. "I wanted to ask, but Kuwabara was so busy flirting with you, I didn't have the time," she answers Yukina's first statement.

"Flirting?" Yukina echoes the word, as she doesn't really understand and unsure if that was what Kuwabara was doing with her when they were on the car. She thought he was talking to her – like he always does.

Botan catches on the slight confusion in the smaller girl's voice, an awkward laugh leaving her throat, as she finally realizes what she just said. She nearly forgot that the ice demon didn't quite have a lot of knowledge in romance. "Uh… Forget I ever said that. I meant, talking. Ha-ha. I've been watching too many love movies lately, you know, and the word just kinda slipped out," she quickly rambles on, trying to make up an excuse.

Thankfully, Yukina believes her and nods her head, her mouth forming a small 'o' in understanding. "Oh, I see."

"Well, anyways, Yukina… is Genkai baa-san ill or something? She's always so energetic, I could hardly imagine her saying she can't walk around…" Botan decides to change the topic, in order to avoid the situation from growing more awkward. But when the words left her, Botan can't help but think that they're truly what she's thinking. The old psychic was always so… well, energetic, that when Yukina had told her what Genkai had said, she had started to wonder if Genkai's sick, or probably worse, dying again. The thought scares her; she doesn't know if she's willing to collect the old woman's soul again if that were to happen.

Yukina lets out a giggle. "Oh, Botan! Don't worry. Nothing's happening to her," she tries to reassure the ferry girl, having caught on to what the other girl was thinking. "I'm sure she just meant that she's lazy."

Relief overcame Botan at the ice demon's words, thankful that nothing bad has occurred to Genkai.

"Ladies, what are you talking about?" Kurama's voice reaches her ears, and both she, and Yukina turn to look at the fox demon who is by then, walking over towards them. He leans his back against the door of his car and slides his hands into his pockets, giving the girls a questioning look.

"Oh, nothing, just about Genkai baa-san," Yukina answers ever so sweetly. From the corner of her eyes, she sees Kuwabara waving his arms at her – and Yusuke's car arriving. The carrot top is calling her name, as if asking her to come over, as Yusuke, Keiko and Hiei – who just brutely slams the door of Yusuke's car, causing the glass to break and the delinquent to yell at him.

"Um… I have to go to Kazuma-kun. He wants to talk to me," the ice demon excuses herself, before bowing down as she always does, and going over to Kuwabara.

Botan smiles as she watches Yukina approach Kuwabara. She doesn't know why the small girl really bothered bowing down; they are friends after all. Really, polite people never stop… At the thought of politeness, the ferry girl spares a look at her boyfriend, on instinct. Her breath hitches in her throat, at the lustful look in Kurama's eyes, darkening the emerald orbs into a dark green color, before glinting gold for a brief moment and again reverting back to their normal color.

She licks her lips unconsciously, getting excited and nervous at the same time under Kurama's hungry look. It's almost as if he's about to eat her, devour her… and the thought makes her wet. Without realizing it, she pulls down her skirt… she doesn't know why, maybe to prevent Kurama from smelling arousal. Not that he wouldn't anyway.

The fox demon breathe in the air, catching the small of his lover's arousal, making his own erection hardening at the thought she's wet again. His lower part is on fire; he hasn't have sex with her since the day before, and really, he can't wait to. Of course, there's a high possibility that they would get busted and someone would find out, but to be frank, Kurama could hardly care at this point. He needs her, and if it isn't for their friends being just right in front of them, he would've taken her then and there.

"Botan," he calls, her name coming out as a purr as it passes his lips. The girl in question stiffens for a moment at the sound of his voice, before she starts to fidget. She always does when she's aroused, she doesn't know why but she can't help herself. Maybe it's a habit; but Kurama finds it quite ravishing to see her act this way – all shy and timid at first, and wanton and shameless later in bed… or in this case, in the forest. The thought of doing something dirty somewhere someone – mainly their friends – could see them turns him on greatly.

"Y-yes?" Botan stutters, her body shaking slightly and Kurama notices.

"If I could get you alone, I would," the redhead growls, dangerous and lustful, his hands in his pockets itching to touch the ferry girl. "But now is not the time," he continues, not growling anymore, as he voices that out in disappointment and frustration.

"I-I know," Botan reluctantly agrees. Oh, if the others weren't here…

"But, I will find time for us to be alone," Kurama suddenly promises, and as Botan turns to meet his gaze, he gives her a seductive look; licking his lips and not taking his eyes off of her. "When that happens, be ready… I won't stop until I make you come, and not just once, Botan… you won't feel be able to feel your legs when you wake up tomorrow," he purrs, his voice as seductive and alluring as the expression on his face.

Botan feels a shiver run down her spine at the redhead's dirty words, growing wetter and hotter as her mind quickly conjures up images of her and Kurama, in not so innocent positions… "Mmm," she moans quietly at the memories, trying not to make any loud noise, as she resists the urge to tackle Kurama then and there, and instead keeps her eyes on their friends, should any suspicion arise. "I'm sure you would, Kurama," she whispers, her voice almost inaudible, but the fox demon catches on to the raw emotion suppressed in that sweet voice of hers.

Kurama parts his lips to say more, wanting to make the girl more hot and bothered for him just with his words, only to stop when Yusuke's voice reach his ears,

"Oi, Kurama! Come over here!"

"And you too, Botan!" Keiko calls as well.

The redhead resists the urge to bang his head against the window of his car, and instead, settles for twitching his eyes instead, albeit subtly. "Let's go, Botan," he tells the girl, trying to retain his voice as normal as possible, as he saunters over to the others.

Botan is mildly surprised by the sudden change of tone in her lover's voice, but the shock soon dies down, and she starts to follow behind him, biting her lower lip in slight disappointment. She wanted to hear more of his dirty talk, but oh well… She mentally sighs. She doesn't know how long she's able to keep up with the secrets anymore; one day she's going to snap and won't be able to hide anything from their friends. But she doesn't want them to know, afraid of what they might think. If they knew she and Kurama are a couple, she's sure they would start asking them questions that would lead to the reveal of the true nature of their relationship… and as much as how her friends claim to be 'respecting of other people's personal lives', they are still a nosy bunch. And when they do find out about Kurama and her, and what kind of lovers they are… she's not sure how they would take such information.

Kurama, on the other hand, can't help but want their friends to find out. His patience is wearing thin – and he doesn't want to keep being secretive all the time. He wants him and Botan to be able to freely show their affections for one another. But, no, they can't know. How could they possibly understand how things are between the two of them?

Both don't know how long they can keep their mouths shut about their relationship. If they know one thing about secrets… it's that most of them don't really stay secrets for forever.

Oh, how things can be complicated.


End file.
